Several days ago, the Los Angeles Lakers were on the unfortunate end of one of the more one-sided contests in the NBA thus far in the 2024-25 regular season. The Lakers lost to the Miami Heat on Dec. 4 by a whopping 41 points.
The largest margin of victory in a single game so far this season is 45, as the Memphis Grizzlies defeated the Portland Trail Blazers by that amount on Nov. 10.
Former New Jersey Nets star big man Kenyon Martin and Washington Wizards guard Gilbert Arenas think the Lakers lost to the Heat in such decisive fashion because the team partied in Miami prior to the contest.
“They got they doors blew off because they was ready to go to Miami, then got to Miami and enjoyed Miami,” Martin said of Los Angeles’ blowout loss.
Arenas agreed with Martin’s assessment.
“We know — see we know that,” Arenas said. “See, y’all talkin’ about y’all lost by 70. We tellin’ you what it look like.”
To add insult to injury, the Lakers didn’t necessarily redeem themselves for their lackluster play against Miami in their most recent game versus the Atlanta Hawks on Friday. Los Angeles picked up yet another loss, as the squad fell to Trae Young and company by two points in overtime.
The Lakers’ losses to the Heat and Hawks are just further indications that the storied franchise is reeling at the moment. Los Angeles owns a record of just 3-7 over its past 10 contests and is just one win over the .500 mark at 12-11. It’s worth noting that the Lakers were sitting pretty in the Western Conference standings with a 10-4 record not all that long ago.
Los Angeles’ three-game losing streak is tied for a season-high, and the Lakers will hope to avoid their fourth consecutive loss when they take on the Trail Blazers at Crypto.com Arena on Sunday night. Fortunately for the Lakers, Portland has been one of the worst teams in the Western Conference so far this season and has especially struggled to win games away from home, as evidenced by the squad’s 3-9 road record.
Fans of the Lakers should have the date of Jan. 15 circled on their calendars, as that marks the day that Los Angeles and Miami will face off for the second and final time of the campaign. The Lakers should have plenty of motivation to play at a high level in that contest.
